Thursday 24 June 2010

OS road names

Shaun sent me an email about a Cyclestreets problem report. There is a cycleway that crosses a railway line on a foot bridge with a cycle ramp up the steps. The steps were not in the database, as Shaun suggested. I went out to check it and knock a few OS Locator name issues off.  The new GPS gave a much better track than the old one along the cycleway which is under a lot of trees beside a railway embankment, so not only did I add the steps but improved the location of the path too. I added the steps, a bike ramp and a bollard too.

At one end of the cycleway is Perth Street West. OS Locator seems to think that a part of it is called Perth Street. This is clearly nonsense, there is a street called Perth Street to the east of Chanterlands Avenue. It contines to the west of the avenue where it is called Perth Street West. Further west it passes under a railway bridge and, according to OS, becomes Perth Street once again. There are no name plates for this section and no houses either. There are a couple of businesses on the road, including S&R Motors and on the back of their van was the address: Perth Street West, so that's what I'll take.

The OS names of roads become definative, which I don't like. In the village where I live there is a road known as Beech Hill. At one end of the road there is an old sign for Beech Hill, but at the other end there is a new sign for Beech Hill Road. All of the long-standing locals call it Beech Hill, but OS call it Beech Hill Road.  Persuading the council that the OS name is wrong is likely to be hard, so I am seeking evidence to establish the long-standing name.

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